Method and apparatus for orienting elements

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for positioning concave articles on an upwardly moving elevator with the articles resting on a side portion thereof, moving the articles upwardly with the elevator, contacting a portion of the articles with a rotating protrusion extending through the elevator, moving the articles from the elevator to one of first or second locations, and commonly orienting the articles at one of first or second locations.

United States Patent [191 Kinney 1 Feb. 12, 1974 [54] METHOD ANDAPPARATUS FOR 3,525,167 8/1970 French;.; .l 198/229 ORIENTING ELEMENTS2,609,912 9/1952 Engel 3,526,311 9/1970 Robinson 198/33 AD [75]Inventor: Alfred W. Kinney, Kansas City, Mo. [73] A PH P t I C FOREIGNPATENTS OR APPLICATIONS ssigneez l lps e r0 eum ompany,

Bartlesv lle Okla. 453,052 7 11/1927 Germany 221/158 [22] Filed: Nov.15, 1971 Primary Examiner-Richard E. Aegerter Appl. No.: 198,646

US. Cl 198/33 AA, 198/33 AD Int. Cl. 865g 47/24 Field of Searchl98/33 R,33 AA; 221/157, 158;

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1/1971 Moeltzner 198/33 AA 1/1953Resina v 198/33 R [5 7] ABSTRACT 14 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTED I3.791.512

' sum 1 OF 2 INVENTOR.

A.W. K I NNEY BY a @w FIG. 3'

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ORIENTING ELEMENTS It is desirable to providean apparatus for removing concave articles, such as lids having sidewallportions, from a concave article bulk source where said articles residein random orientation and delivering said lids to a preselected locationin commonly oriented positions. By the term lids used herein it is meantany article having side portions and a top portion defining an articlehaving at least one concave portion.

In summary, this invention therefore resides in a method and apparatusfor positioning the lids on an upright conveyor or elevator with thelids resting on a side portion of said lids, moving the lids upwardlywith the elevator, contacting a portion of the lids with a rotatingprotrusion extending through the conveyor, moving the lids from theconveyor to one of first or second locations, and commonly orienting thelids at one of first or second locations.

Other aspects, objects, and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from a study of the disclosure, the appended claims, andthe drawings.

The drawings are diagrammatic views of the apparatus of this invention.FIG. 1 is a portion of the apparatus with the first and second chutesremoved, FIG. 2 shows a view of the upper portion of the elevator withportions of the chutes cut away, FIG. 3 shows a plan view of theapparatus with the hopper removed, FIG. 4 shows a plan view of thehopper, and FIG. 5 shows a side view of the hopper in partial section.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2,an elevator 2 extends upv wardly from withinan article hopper 4. The elevator 2 has spaced-apart cross members 6positioned along its length for receiving and supporting the lids 8 andmoving said lids 8 upwardly. The cross members 6 are of dimensionsadapted to receive and maintain a lid 8 with said lid 8 resting on aside portion 10 thereof. A lid 8 resting on one of the cross members isoriented relative to the elevator 2 with its concave portion 12 directedtoward or from the elevator 2.

Where the article or lids 8 are ice cream caps, for example, the top 14and side portions 10 of the lid define the concave portion 12. The lid 8can however-be of other configuration so long as, in the position of thelid resting on its side portion 10, the top 14 defining the concaveportion is spaced a closer distance to one edge of the lid than theother. One example would be a lid having two concave portions and beingof an H configuration and cross section.

The cross members 6 are spaced one from the other a distance in therange of about 2 to about 1 times the diameter or largest dimension ofthe top 14 of the article of lid 8 carried by the elevator 2, preferablyabout 1% times. At distances less than about 1% times the dimension ofthe top 14, the M58 are not effectively fed into the elevator anddimensions greater than about 2 times the dimension of the top 14 resultin jamming of the articles, waste of elevatorspace, materials, and theoperating speed of the apparatus is reduced which results in furtherobvious wastes.

In order to assure that the lids 8 remain on their cross member 6 duringupward movement thereby, it is preferred that the elevator be inclinedat an angle in the range of about 5 to about 15 relative to the verticalin a direction whereby gravity urges the Iids.8 'resting on the crossmembers 6 toward the elevator 2. At angles less than about 5, the lids 8are more prone to be displaced from the elevator by vibrational forcesand at angles greater than about 15, the lids 8 are sufficientlydifficult to orient as to cause undesirable malfunctions of theapparatus.

A selector drum 16 has an outer surface 18 and at least one protrusion20, preferably a plurality of protrusions, extending radially outwardfrom the outer surface 18. The drum 16 is operably connected to a powersource 22 for rotation of the drum and is positioned adjacent an upperend portion 24 of the elevator 2. The protrusions 20 are of a lengthsufficient for extending through the elevator 2 to a location apreselected distance beyond the elevator 2 for contacting and moving thelids 8 from the elevator 2 to a commonly oriented position at a firstlocation 26, in response to the orientation of the lid 8 on the elevator2 when its concave portion is oriented in a direction from the elevator2.

A lid 8' having its concave portion 12 oriented in a direction from theelevator 2 has its top 14 contacted by one of the protrusions 20 duringthe rotation thereof which causes said lid 8 to flip over and come torest at the first location 26 on the first chute 30 with the concaveportion 12 of the lid 8' directed downwardly. Protrusions 20 preferablyare of insufficient length so that a lid 8" having its concave portion12 oriented in a direction toward the elevator 2 is not contacted by oneofv the protrusions 20 during the rotation thereof and said lid 8" ispushed by the cross member 6 over the upper end 32 of the elevator anddeposited at the second location 28 on the second chute with the concaveportion 12 of the lid 8" also directed downwardly. In anotherembodiment, the protrusion 20 can be of a length for contacting the sideportion 10 and pulling the lid 8" over said upper end 32. I

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the first chute 30 has a first end portion36 positioned at the first location 26 and extending outwardly therefromand the second chute 34 has a first end portion 38 positioned at thesecond location 28 and extending outwardly therefrom. A third chute 40can be connected to the second end 42,44 of the first and second chutes30, 34 for receiving lids 8', 8".therefrom and directing said lids to apreselected location such as for example a capping machine. The thirdchute 40 can also have apparatus (not shown) associated therewith fordivering any excess lids resting on the third chute 40 back to saidhopper 4. This diverting apparatus is a safety feature which effectivelyhandles excess lids when the capping machine has malfunctioned, forexample.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, in order to provide a hopper 4 of aconfiguration which reduces the amount of jamming and bridging ofdisoriented lids 8 therein while feeding the lids 8 toward the elevator2 for deposit thereon, the bottom 46 of the hopper is positioned in thehopper at an angle relative to the horizontal in the range of about 30to about 45 and extending downwardly toward the elevator 2.'At anglesless than about 30, the lids 8 are not effectively moved by gravitytoward the elevator and at angles greater than about 45, the amount ofinterlocking, bridging, and feeding malfunctions are increased owing tothe weight of the overlying lids 8 and the lid direction change thatmust be effected.

In order to further assure against bridging, interlocking, and otherfeeding malfunctions, it is preferred that an unscrambling rotatableelement 48 having protru-- sions 50 extending outwardly into the hopper4 form at least a portion of the hopper bottom 46 and said element 48 berotatable for moving the protrusions 50 within the hopper 4. Theprotrusions 50 are preferably spaced apart and may be of conicalconfiguration for protecting the lids 8 against damage during contactwith the protrusions 50.

In order to further assure effective feed of lids 8 to the elevator 2,it is preferred that first and second side elements 52, 54 be angularlypositioned in the hopper 4 relative to the elevator 2 with one end ofsaid element 52, 54 being adjacent the elevator 2 on opposed sidesthereof with each of said elements 52, 54extending angularly outwardlyin the hopper 4 from the elevator 2.

In the preferred method of this invention, lids 8 in the hopper 4 arepositioned on the cross member 6 with the concave portion of some lidsoriented in a direction from the elevator and some lids with theirconcave portion oriented in a direction toward the elevator as set forthabove and moved upwardly in response to the upward movement of theelevator 2. At the upper portion 24 of the elevator 2, a drum protrusion20 contacts the lid 8 with the concave portion oriented in a directionfrom the elevator and moves the lid from the elevator to a firstlocation 26, and commonly orients the lids 8 at said location 26. Lidswith their concave portion oriented toward the elevator are pushed bythe cross member 6 over the top of the elevator 2 to the second location28 where the lids are commonly oriented with the lids at the firstlocation 26. The side elements 52, 54 cause the lids to be directedtoward the elevator 2 and the unscrambling element 48 continuously movesat least a portion of the lids 8 in the hopper 4 adjacent the elevator 2for assuring proper feeding of the lids to the elevator 2.

The power source connected to the elevator 2, unscrambling element 48,and drum 16 can be a single power source or separate power sources as isknown in the art.

Other modifications and alterations of this invention will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing discussion andaccompanying drawings, and it should be understood that this inventionis not to be unduly limited thereto.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for recovering articles having a concave portion defined bya top and a side portion from a concave article bulk source, orientingsaid articles with the top of said articles uppermost and deliveringsaid oriented articles to a preselectedlocation, comprising:

an article hopper;

first means for receiving and maintaining individual articles suchresting on their side portion and moving said articles upwardly, saidfirst means comprising an elevator extending upwardly from the hopper;

means for contacting and moving articles from the elevator to a commonlyoriented position at one of first or second locations in response to theorientation of the article on the elevator, said articles having theirconcave portions directed toward the elevator being contacted, liftedover the elevator, and deposited at the second location, and saidarticles having their concave portions directed outwardly from theelevator being contacted, moved outwardly from the elevator, anddeposited at the first location, said means comprising a selector drumhaving an outer surface and at least one protrusion extending radiallyoutwardly therefrom, said drum being rotatably mounted adjacent an upperend portion of the elevator and said protrusion having a lengthsufficient for extending through the elevator to a location apreselected distance beyond the elevator during rotation of the drum forcontacting and moving articles from the elevator;

second means positioned at the first location for receiving one portionof the articles from the elevator and directing said articles to thepreselected location; and

third means positioned at the second location for receiving theremaining portion of the articles from the elevator and directing saidarticles to the preselected location.

2. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including an unscramblingelement having protrusions extending outwardly therefrom, saiduncrambling element being angularly positioned in the hopper relative tothe elevator and rotatable for moving the protrusions within the hopper.

3. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 2, wherein the unscramblingelement is positioned in the hopper at an angle relative to thehorizontal in the range of about 30 to about 45.

4. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 2, wherein the protrusions of theunscrambling element are of conical configuration and are spaced on theunscrambling element one from the other.

5. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including side elements beingangularly positioned in the hopper relative to the elevator with one endof each element being adjacent the elevator on opposed sides thereofwith each of said elements extending angularly outwardly in the hopperfrom the elevator.

6. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the elevator hasspaced apart cross members along its length for supporting the articlesthereon, said cross members being spaced one from the other a distancein the range of about 2 to about 1 times the diameter of the top of thearticle carried by said elevator.

7. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the elevator isinclined at an angle in the range of about 5 to about 15 relative to thevertical.

8. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including a third chuteconnected to the first and second means and being adapted to receivecommonly oriented articles from said first and second means chutes. v

9. A method for recovering articles having a concave portion defined bya top and a side portion from an article bulk source, orienting saidarticles with the top of said articles aligned in a preselecteddirection and delivering said oriented articles to a preselectedlocation, comprising:

positioning said articles on an upwardly moving elevator with saidarticles having a side portion resting on the elevator;

moving the articles upwardly in response to movement of the elevator;

rotating a protrusion of a selector drum through a portion of theelevator and over a top of the elevator;

contacting the top of articles having their concave portions oriented ina direction from the elevator with the protrusion, moving the articlesoutwardly from the conveyor to a first location in response to theorientation of the article on the elevator and the contacting of the topof the article by the protrusion, and commonly orienting the articles atthe first location, and contacting a side portion of articles with theirconcave portions oriented in a direction toward the elevator, movingsaid articles over the top of the elevator to a second location inresponse to the orientation of the article on the elevator and thecontacting of the side portion of the article by the protrusion, andcommonly orienting the article at said second location; and moving thecommonly oriented articles from the first and second locations to apreselected location while maintaining said articles commonly oriented.10. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including an unscramblingelement having generally conical, spaced-apart protrusions extendingoutwardly therefrom, said element being positioned in the hopper at anangle relative to the horizontal in the range of about ofabout 2 toabout 1 times the diameter of the top of the article carried by saidelevator and wherein said elevator is inclined at an angle in the rangeof about 5 to about 15 relative to the vertical, and including sideelements being angularly positioned in the hopper relative to theelevator with one end of each element being adjacent the elevator onopposed sides thereof with each of said elements extending angularlyoutwardly in i the hopper from the elevator.

11. A method, as set forth in claim 9, including continuously moving atleast a portion of the articles of the article bulk source at a locationadjacent the elevator.

12. A method, as set forth in claim 9, including directing the articlesof the article bulk source in a direction toward the elevator.

13. A method, as set forth in claim 10, wherein the articles are movedupwardly in response to movement of the elevator at an angle in therange of about 5 to about 15 relative to the vertical.

14. A method, as set forth in claim 13, including continuously moving atleast a portion of the articles of the article bulk source at a locationadjacent the elevator, directing the articles of the article bulk sourcein a direction toward the elevator, and slidably moving the articlesfrom the first and second locations to the preselected location.

ULLLJJU v.- i v CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No, 3,791,512 fiated:February 12, 1971* Alfred W. Kinney It is certified that error appearsin the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are herebycorrected as shown below:

Column 3, line 53, delete "such" and insert therefor each and column 1+,line 1 9, delete chutes".

Signed and sealed this 2nd day of July 1974.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M. FLETCHER,JR. C.MARSHALL DANN Attesting Officer Commissioner ofPatents

1. Apparatus for recovering articles having a concave portion defined bya top and a side portion from a concave article bulk source, orientingsaid articles with the top of said articles uppermost and deliveringsaid oriented articles to a preselected location, comprising: an articlehopper; first means for receiving and maintaining individual articlessuch resting on their side portion and moving said articles upwardly,said first means comprising an elevator extending upwardly from thehopper; means for contacting and moving articles from the elevator to acommonly oriented position at one of first or second locations inresponse to the orientation of the article on the elevator, saidarticles having their concave portions directed toward the elevatorbeing contacted, lifted over the elevator, and deposited at the secondlocation, and said articles having their concave portions directedoutwardly from the elevator being contacted, moved outwardly from theelevator, and deposited at the first location, said means comprising aselector drum having an outer surface and at least one protrusionextending radially outwardly therefrom, said drum being rotatablymounted adjacent an upper end portion of the elevator and saidprotrusion having a length sufficient for extending through the elevatorto a location a preselected distance beyond the elevator during rotationof the drum for contacting and moving articles from the elevator; secondmeans positioned at the first location for receiving one portion of thearticles from the elevator and directing said articles to thepreselected location; and third means positioned at the second locationfor receiving the remaining portion of the articles from the elevatorand directing said articles to the preselected location.
 2. Anapparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including an unscrambling elementhaving protrusions extending outwardly therefrom, said uncramblingelement being angularly positioned in the hopper relative to theelevator and rotatable for moving the protrusions within the hopper. 3.An apparatus, as set forth in claim 2, wherein the unscrambling elementis positioned in the hopper at an angle relative to the horizontal inthe range of about 30* to about 45*.
 4. An apparatus, as set forth inclaim 2, wherein the protrusions of the unscrambling element are ofconical configuration and are spaced on the unscrambling element onefrom the other.
 5. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including sideelements being angularly positioned in the hopper relative to theelevator with one end of each element being adjacent the elevator onopposed sides thereof with each of said elements extending angularlyoutwardly in the hopper from the elevator.
 6. An apparatus, as set forthin claim 1, wherein the elevator has spaced apart cross members alongits length for supporting the articles thereon, said cross members beingspaced one from the other a distance in the range of about 2 to about 1times the diameter of the top of the article carried by said elevator.7. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the elevator isinclined at an angle in the range of about 5* to about 15* relative tothe vertical.
 8. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including athird chute connected to the first and second means and being adapted toreceive commonly oriented articles from said first and second meanschutes.
 9. A method for recovering articles having a concave portiondefined by a top and a side portion from an article bulk source,orienting said articles with the top of said articles aligned in apreselected direction and delivering said oriented articles to apreselected location, comprising: positioning said articles on anupwardly moving elevator with said articles having a side portionresting on the elevator; moving the articles upwardly in response tomovement of the elevator; rotating a protrusion of a selector drumthrough a portion of the elevator and over a top of the elevator;contacting the top of articles having their concave portions oriented ina direction from the elevator with the protrusion, moving the articlesoutwardly from the conveyor to a first location in response to theorientation of the article on the elevator and the contacting of the topof the article by the protrusion, and commonly orienting the articles atthe first location, and contacting a side portion of articles with theirconcave portions oriented in a direction toward the elevator, movingsaid articles over the top of the elevator to a second location inresponse to the orientation of the article on the elevator and thecontacting of the side portion of the article by the protrusion, andcommonly orienting the article at said second location; and moving thecommonly oriented articles from the first and second locations to apreselected location while maintaining said articles commonly oriented.10. An apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, including an unscramblingelement having generally conical, spaced-apart protrusions extendingoutwardly therefrom, said element being positioned in the hopper at anangle relative to the horizontal in the range of about 30* to about 45*and extending downwardly toward the elevator and being rotatable andwherein the elevator has spaced-apart cross members along its length forsupporting the articles thereon, said cross members being spaced onefrom the other a distance in the range of about 2 to about 1 times thediameter of the top of the article carried by said elevator and whereinsaid elevator is inclined aT an angle in the range of about 5* to about15* relative to the vertical, and including side elements beingangularly positioned in the hopper relative to the elevator with one endof each element being adjacent the elevator on opposed sides thereofwith each of said elements extending angularly outwardly in the hopperfrom the elevator.
 11. A method, as set forth in claim 9, includingcontinuously moving at least a portion of the articles of the articlebulk source at a location adjacent the elevator.
 12. A method, as setforth in claim 9, including directing the articles of the article bulksource in a direction toward the elevator.
 13. A method, as set forth inclaim 10, wherein the articles are moved upwardly in response tomovement of the elevator at an angle in the range of about 5* to about15* relative to the vertical.
 14. A method, as set forth in claim 13,including continuously moving at least a portion of the articles of thearticle bulk source at a location adjacent the elevator, directing thearticles of the article bulk source in a direction toward the elevator,and slidably moving the articles from the first and second locations tothe preselected location.